The Top 10 Craziest Sports Stories in the Past Five Years

The Top 10 Craziest Sports Stories in the Past Five Years

If you are on Bleacher Report's website, consider yourself one of the billions of people who just cannot get enough sports.

It is not a bad thing, trust me, as we surround ourselves with coverage and updates anywhere we are to stay as current as possible.

While there are news stories that happen every single day, a few have gone next level, taking over the Internet like a wildfire.

So, whether a viral video or breaking news, here are the craziest sports stories in the past five years.

Aaron Hernandez

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Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

I assume that most people think that Aaron Hernandez is the craziest man in sports.

After a breakout season in 2012 that saw him not only make the Pro Bowl, but also ink a huge deal from the franchise that drafted him (the New England Patriots), Hernandez went and ruined it all.

On trial for the murder of a few different people, it is clear that the guy was running with the wrong crowd—or just had really messed up thoughts—that led to him getting sent behind bars.

New happenings continue to be uncovered, so his story is still very much in the news.

The Trick Shot Trend

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Thanks to every single person on the planet having a camera on their phone, accessibility to record something remarkable is at an all-time high.

Just Google search the words, "viral trick shots," and you will get an abundance of people doing their best to become the next big Internet sensation.

A few have accomplished the feat, while others have not had as much luck.

Regardless of stature online, people will continue to record themselves trying insane stunts for all of us to enjoy.

Brett Favre and Jenn Sterger

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Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

As a quarterback during his 20-year NFL career, Brett Favre was known as a gunslinger who liked to take risks.

It turns out he did the same thing when off-the-field, too.

That is because it came out that Favre was caught sending some dicktures to former New York Jets reporter Jenn Sterger when the two were both with the team in 2010.

Whenever one of the game’s great signal-callers of the past 20 years gets busted for doing something like this, it is obvious people will have an absolute field day in mocking the whole ordeal—which wonderfully happened.

Donald Sterling

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USA TODAY Sports

It was not completely a shock for some to hear the news that L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling had some extremely racist comments a month or so ago—but it still was unheard of.

Voicing his opinions to his girlfriend over the phone, Sterling bashed Lakers great Magic Johnson, as well as the entire African American community—with many players of that race on the Clippers team he now used to own.

For his bigotry, Sterling became the quintessential target on the Internet, with everyone talking about his ignorance—which is why he no longer can claim to be a sports team owner after a life-long ban.

Tiger Woods

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Jeffrey Phelps/Associated Press

Widely looked at as one of the most influential —and best—golfers ever, Tiger Woods was always assumed to be the All-American guy who could do no wrong.

Boy, did he break that assumption. Hard.

After a mysteriously strange argument with his then wife Elin Nordegren on Thanksgiving Day, 2009, Woods had all types of skeletons—and porn stars, prostitutes and other extremely attractive women—come forward in saying that he had spent wild nights with them.

He got dropped from a few sponsors and was MIA from golf while he was in sex rehab, but he has bounced back from it all to regain his standing as the world's most popular golfer.

Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin

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Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Although this one just happened in this past season, the entire aspect of it brought a whole new meaning to hazing in NFL locker rooms.

While pro athletes—especially NFL players—are supposed to be thick-skinned and tough, former Miami Dolphins offensive linemen Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin proved that they do not all have to be, as Martin was intentionally bullied by his teammate, Incognito.

Tapes of verbal abuse and threatening behavior showed that the national debate about bullying had climbed all the way to the NFL, with Incognito eventually getting suspended and released by the Dolphins, as the guy made a billion-dollar company look like a couple of neighborhood kids on the playground.

Lance Armstrong

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George Burns/Associated Press

Becoming one of the most inspiring athletes ever after defeating testicular cancer and winning a record seven-straight Tour de France titles, Lance Armstrong had always been under the PED microscope—but he always denied any wrongdoing.

So it was a huge deal when the guy openly admitted to Oprah Winfrey back in early 2013 that he had, indeed, been doping for the majority of his cycling career.

Like others on this list, Armstrong was dropped by sponsors and, yes, even his own Livestrong foundation bid him farewell, while naturally being stripped of his yellow jerseys.

LeBron James' Decision

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Back in 2010, the entire sports world was preparing for the moment that then Cleveland Cavaliers MVP LeBron James was going to make his decision about where he would play.

With a ton of suitors on his heels, James met with different teams, listening to their pitches before deciding on what he would do.

With the words, "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach to play for the Miami Heat," to join good friends Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, the landscape for all professional sports was laid—causing quite the controversy.

Manti Te'o

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JOE RAYMOND/Associated Press

Remember that time former Notre Dame star linebacker and 2012 Heisman Trophy runner-up Manti Te'o had that inspiring story about playing for his then recently deceased grandma and girlfriend?

Yeah, about that.

As the world found out, Te'o was batting just 50 percent in his efforts to play through the pain of loss, as it was discovered that one of the most polarizing athletes in the country at that time was a victim of a harsh catfishing scheme—which led to the Internet clowning on the poor kid.

Penn State Scandal

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Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Okay, this one is just absolutely disgusting for so many reasons.

Thought to be a pillar of excellence under the guidance of former head football coach Joe Paterno, the Penn State football team fell under target for a child sex scandal that rocked both sports and an entire youth community.

With former players and participants at the school’s football camp alleging that longtime Defensive Coordinator Jerry Sandusky had sexually assaulted them, the Internet was covered with news about the proceeding hearings.

It ultimately led to Sandusky being rightfully sent behind bars for at least 30 years and Paterno being forced out—ultimately passing away a few months after the initial allegations.